Coinbase has asked the U.S. Department of the Treasury to limit the scope of the rules that will implement the GENIUS Act, signed on July 18, 2025. The company warns that a broad interpretation could hamper the competitiveness of payment stablecoins and affect exchanges, developers and institutional treasuries. This request comes during the Treasury’s public consultation and affects issuers, intermediaries and blockchain infrastructure providers awaiting operational and accounting clarity.
The GENIUS Act established a federal framework for stablecoins and passed Congress with notable votes (Senate 68-30; House 308-122), according to congressional records and media coverage.
The Treasury initiated rulemaking with an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on September 18, 2025, opening a comment period until early November 2025, according to official documents. The law sets a practical effective date around January 18, 2027, or 120 days after enactment, leaving time for detailed rules to be developed.
Technically, a stablecoin is a digital asset designed to maintain parity with a fiat currency, typically through reserves or backing mechanisms.
Coinbase has three areas of concern
First, Coinbase asks Treasury to avoid applying the GENIUS Act regime to software developers, validators and open‑source contributors, emphasizing that their role is technical infrastructure rather than financial activity.
Second, Coinbase argues the ban on paying interest to stablecoin issuers should not extend to rewards and loyalty programs offered by exchanges or third parties; a broad interpretation, the firm says, “would rewrite the carefully drawn lines set by Congress and conflict with the text and purpose of the statute.”
Third, Coinbase requests pragmatic tax and accounting treatment for fully backed payment stablecoins, asking that they be recognized as cash equivalents to avoid operational frictions.
The next stage will be the Treasury’s response to ANPRM comments and the eventual publication of one or more NPRs that will specify the final scope; that phase will determine whether the lines Coinbase seeks are incorporated into the regulatory text.
